A Wind Chime
by JohnWilmot
Summary: Erik and Nadir have both changed more than they realized. Based on Susan Kay's novel. Slash.


My first attempt at Erik/Nadir, or at a fic in a while, hah. This is based off of Susan Kay's Phantom, an excellent book that everyone in the world should read if they haven't. Comments, criticisms, and the like are all welcome.

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"No. Absolutely not."

My refusal was perfectly clear in my tone, but Nadir's gaze showed me that he was willing to put up a fight.

"The shah has specifically requested your presence, Erik. To not show up would not only be disobedience, but a public humiliation." His eyes were firm, yet calm as always.

"What does that matter to me?" I waved a hand, moving to flop down on some pillows with a heavy sigh, Nadir's disapproving gaze never shifting from me. I looked up to meet those eyes again wearily. How infuriating his stony stubbornness could be at times!

"Please, Erik. It is only one festival." He had resorted to guilt, his last weapon, which usually worked, if I were to be persuaded at all. It had won the first time we had met, after all. I sighed, shifting slightly, glancing elsewhere behind the mask.

"One of many." I looked back on the many meetings and celebrations I had been required to attend and perform at. At first, the display of power and the ability to leave the Persian court in awe with my capabilities inspired a strange satisfaction in me, but now I grew tired of this constant parading. Nadir knew well that I was greatly displeased with the khanum already, what with her increasingly impossible demands for a bloodlust that would never be satiated. Not to mention that the thought of seeing that disgusting leech, the grand vazir, made me want to be physically ill.

The silence that followed was only ended when I quit my stalling and finally met his eyes, knowing I could not help but give in. Both of us knew well the danger I would be not only be putting myself in by refusing, but Nadir as well, and that was something I couldn't allow, not for something so small. I think he could recognize my resignation, for he gave a flicker of a smile, although attempting to hide it.

"Well?" His tone was expectant. I wanted to sneer at him. He knew I had given in; he simply wanted to hear the words from my lips!

"Alright, Daroga, I'll go. But do not expect anything more from me." I turned away from him. He knew well by now that I was never any more sociable than I needed to be, if even that.

"Thank you, Erik. I will alert the shah that you have accepted his invitation." I could see him give a modest little bow from the corner of my eye before leaving the room. Invitation, hah! I took of the mask and tossed it down beside me, leaning back into the pillows and briefly closed my eyes. The more I had stayed in this country, the more I became aware how barbaric it really was. My wretched temper threatened to betray me on numerous occasions, and I'm sure Nadir was greatly surprised at the restraint I'd held over it for this long. Restraint adequate enough to not have me executed, that is.

I was almost surprised that I had not been asked to perform that night. The shah seemed to view me as his Shakespeare, his special prize to show off at any given time, especially in the company of foreign ambassadors and the like. But tonight I was just as any high-classman, or as close as a man with a mask can get, sitting beside Nadir and watching the little display of fire in near boredom. I had a sneaking suspicion that the shah was also trying to show off to me, to prove that he was capable of entertainment without my help. It was not difficult to assume that this had something to do with my rudeness towards him in the past few days, my usual arrogance that even Nadir had told me the shah would grow weary of after a time.

The little display of fire was amusing. The incense wafting around the room was slowly getting to my head, but it did not dull my senses enough to not notice the wary glances I was receiving, the hushed whispers that I had grown accustomed to. Amazing how a scar so deep can still be reopened with a single harsh look, a single whispering of the word monster... The grand vazir and his company had made sure to spread the filthy title around shamelessly, completely unaware of the sleeping tiger beneath me that they were tempting. I narrowed my eyes at him, sitting there in his bliss with his wife and usual drones. How dare he...what gave him the right of happiness, of _normalcy?_

Wine had been passed around, and although Nadir had always strongly advised me to have a servant taste it, I regarded his warnings with cold indifference. If I were poisoned or not, I never saw much fear in the face of death. Only the completion of the palace in Mazanderan tied me to life. And even he knew that if the shah was displeased with me, there was still much I had to offer him. Whatever the Daroga's warnings, I was obviously not to be killed tonight, for all the wine served to do to my body was cast a sweet shadow of calm over me, clearing my mind with a warm shroud of pleasant repose.

Although Persia's customs never fail to disgust me, I have always found myself fascinated with their culture. What they lack in medicine and scientific knowledge, they nearly make up for in the arts. Nadir was kind enough on several occasions to share these things with me, perhaps in an attempt to redeem Persia in my mind with exotic poetry and old legends that intrigued me like a child enraptured by fairy tales. They also are very fond of dancing, an art I had always been fascinated with from afar. Even as a young boy, watching the gypsy girls dance, I was amazed at their agile bodies, moving and forming together to the music, a symbol of human contact and touch, something I would never have. So it was like a knife, a sweet sort of pain, watching the Persian girls before me now. Their bodies moved and danced like the flame of a candle, sweat and no doubt some sort of oil glistening on their smooth skin. Such elegance and grace...a need possessed my entire being, my hand gripping tightly on my robes, knuckles turning white with the intensity. Slowly my eyes met with the shah's, whose face practically shown with satisfaction, and I saw in his gaze the knowing sadism...the sheer acknowledgment of pain!

Feeling a fury overcome me, I rose abruptly. If I did not leave now, if I did not escape from this madness, there was no limit to what I could do. Without a word I left, not bothering to even look at Nadir, who was giving me an alarmed look even as I stormed out, but did not dare follow me. I was beside myself with a fury I cannot even begin to describe, such an intense hate and loathing that I could not have possibly been responsible for my actions if I had not left then and there.

Returning to my apartment, I found the silence my only relief, although bitter in the same instance. In all good there is some form of evil... in all evil, good. Flinging myself in the pillows once more, my mind went at first to opium, but I pushed the thought away. For once, I did not want its sweet surrender.

The shah! He knew the way I suffered, the things my curse had denied me...he had learned well from his mother in the ways of torture, and I was not beyond the reach of his cruelty. The more his cold grip closed around me, the more I struggled between his fingers. His attempt to beat submission into me would only drive me towards further defiance. Standing, I began to pace the room frantically, resisting every urge to throw furniture in my anger, desperately trying to subdue the one emotion I could not harness.

The shah should consider his life very precious that night!

I do not know how long I paced, torn between my need to kill and my will to control myself. The mind is a terrible trap, a torture chamber I had wandered into with no means of escape. It could have been hours or sheer minutes that I had been there before I hear the door opening, Nadir stepping inside and finding my frayed form.

"Oh, did you decide not to stay and enjoy the festivities?" I spat at him, misdirecting my rage once again.

"Erik..." Nadir's voice was low, a strange look etched into his face that resembled pity. I looked away from him, continuing my pacing. I was in no mood for his calming sensibility.

"Damn him...damn him and his little parading of his servants as if they are mere toys for his amusement..." My fist clenched in my hair, I tried desperately to ignore Nadir as he watched me pace.

"Erik." After a moment he approached me, cautious though he was, for he knew to be wary of my temper. "It was simply a festival, there was no offense meant by --"

"He mocks my existence!" I returned before he could finish, as if he were the cause of my pain. "Constantly he reminds me of what I am, of what I will never have! No doubt tonight's display was inspired by that wretched woman..." I stalked over to where I had been seated earlier, slumping down, having almost exhausting myself in my anger. Nadir slowly came closer, sitting beside me, holding a bottle of wine that I had not noticed before. I looked up and met his gaze.

"Drink with me," he said simply, finding two glasses for us. His eyes were calm, and his tone direct, so I could find no cause for suspicion in his statement. I sighed, taking the glass and watching him pour the red liquid. He knew it would ease my temper. We both drank for a moment in silence, and I watched him carefully, knowing that it was wrong of me to accuse him as I did. Nadir, my conscience, my desperate cling to sanity...at times I almost seemed to forget the kindness he continuously showed me.

"Perhaps you will find my company...slightly more entertaining, then, Erik?" His tone was of slight amusement, only trying to put me in good spirits again. Usually I would have requested to be alone, but I could not deny him tonight. Why was this man capable of bringing me down from an anger without barely uttering a word? It was not his logic that swayed me, but his simple kindness, something that tonight had made me too curious to remember my fury. I could have blamed it on the wine, loosening my rage's clutching grip on me, easing my tense muscles, but only Nadir had managed to managed to slip past the wall of my mind.

"I should like to visit the marketplace." No doubt my request surprised him. On the precious few days that I was not overloaded with work, I usually chose to stay in my apartment, relishing in my time away from my tyrannical superiors. But it was clear that I had my mind quite set. He knew if he did not accompany me, I would go on my own, which could have been dangerous: not because I couldn't protect myself, but because he would never know when to expect me back!

We found the marketplace busy as usual; I daresay I would have thought something horribly wrong if it had not been crowded. Nadir was strangely quiet as he followed me along, letting me wander from booth to booth and feed my imagination with little trinkets and things that I found various uses for, although I'm sure he found me quite insane for indulging in what must have looked like useless gadgets. Surprisingly he kept his opinions to himself, trailing after me with his servant and barely saying a word. I began to wonder if he, like me, was lost in his own thoughts.

We had shared so much wine between the two of us the night before that I was amazed he was not cursing me in the morning, and that he had remembered anything at all. Even under such conditions I have always been cursed with an incredible memory, only insult to injury to my infernal existence. The details of our conversation were hazy, but pleasant. He had not reprimanded me that night, I had noticed. I'm sure his curiosity would have compelled him to ask why such a small thing as a festival had angered me, if he had only dared. But then again, what can be small about such mockery? It was not so much the desire; I had learned to control that long ago. The shah's blatant insult on what I could not have stung worse than anything else.

I could not even determine in my own mind what had inspired me to come to the market today. Yesterday's anger was not forgotten, and a great part of me would have enjoyed wafting through a cloud of opium for the remainder of the time I had to myself. But sanity clung to me like a helpless child, a child that I sometimes entertained, but too often neglected.

I stopped in front of one booth, too lost in my thoughtful haze to take much notice of the wondering stares that met with my mask, instead picking up an object that caught my interest, holding it up to examine. The sun shown on the decorative pieces of glass surrounding the metal tubes, which bumped each other and created a delightful tinkling. A miniscule, rather simple item, to be sure, but nevertheless beautiful. Pleasantly I paid what the woman offered, Nadir making some noise of dissent behind me, but saying nothing. He knew better by now than to try to urge me into his customs if they did not please me.

Wandering on, searching my mind for just what I was looking for, and for what purpose, my attention was caught by a man's raised voice that immediately made the hair on my neck stand on end. Spinning around, I witnessed a man's form towering over a woman, recoiled on the ground beneath him. The obscenities he uttered at her were atrocious, yet no one passing stopped or spared so much as a second glance. Fury built up in me, my teeth grinding together as my eyes were locked hotly on the man, every memory of being scolded, beaten, whipped, conjured up in my mind.

"Ignorant woman! Absolute disgrace!" The man did not strike her more than once before my hands were at his throat, my grip tightening, almost lifting him off of his feet. Nadir had rushed to my side immediately, a commotion already stirring among the marketplace.

"Erik!" He protested, glancing nervously from me to those who had caught notice. His words barely reached my ears; I was so blinded by my own rage that I was almost incapable from stopping myself from wringing the man's neck right in that moment. It was as if I barely saw his widened eyes, barely felt his hands clutching at my own...

Finally regaining control of myself, I tossed the man back, practically throwing him down. Turning to look at the cowering woman at my feet, I watched her back away under my gaze with almost indifference, only attempting to calm the beating muscle in my chest. Nadir slowly approached, standing near me, watching me with a look I could not comprehend.

"Erik, she --"

My harsh words halted him before he was given the chance to finish. "She is only a peasant. Is that what you wish to tell me? Is that what you wish me to believe, Daroga? Somehow I shall find comfort in the fact that she is not as well-off as we, is that what you presume?" I threw all of this in his face at once. Instead of startling him, I had only succeeded in deepening the expression that only confused me, his eyes strangely sad. We stood there in silent for a moment, me glaring at him from behind the mask, shoulders rising and falling in an attempt to catch my breath, him, contrastingly, very still.

At length he turned, looking to his servants that were lingering obediently. "Give this woman whatever she needs. Tend to her as if she were the lady of your household." I watched him in disbelief as he approached her, pulling a purse from his pocket and dropping it in her lap. "Speak of this to no one." His tone was lower now. "This should be sufficient for you to provide for yourself without your husband, if you choose." Her eyes were as wide as my own, not daring to speak as she gaped at him, her eyes then slowly sliding over to me. Nadir turned away from her matter-of-factly, walking past me. I turned also, to follow him, not breaking the silence, only watching the back of his head strangely, almost unsure of what I had just seen.

The journey home was a relatively silent one. I knew that the man could not be punished for such a common crime, but the wife now had a chance of survival by her own means. Perhaps to go back to her parents, or become a handmaiden... the Daroga that I often got in arguments with over the value of life had given her a choice. He had altered the life of a woman I had expected to be meaningless to him. I began to realize that Nadir was not the same man that had come to fetch me from Nijni-Novgorod many months ago.

The child coughed and sputtered slightly as we entered, but when he saw me his eyes lit up with joy. Pulling himself into a sitting position in his bed, he waited patiently for whatever I had for him. I had brought various toys and such for him, but the special gift I had saved for last. Seated beside him, I lifted the object out of its wrapping and held it up level to his eyes, the tubes tinkling lightly as I did so.

"It is a wind chime." I said simply. "It can hang where you sit outside, to make music for you when I cannot." Reza smiled widely, taking it in his small hands and proclaiming his delight.

"It is very pretty," he admired it openly, causing me to smile as well as he ran his fingers over the design. "Thank you, Erik." This second part was slightly more forced, the effect of politeness ground into a child's head from an early age.

Nadir cleared his throat, and I looked up in time to catch him leaving. He had been silent ever since he returned, but I dismissed it. Sometimes he was difficult to read. He was more complex of a man than I had first thought.

"Erik," Reza said suddenly, causing me to look back at him. The wind chime lay in his lap, and his eyes were focused entirely on me in a worried expression. "Erik, do you have any medicine that can make Father happy again?"

It was the simple thoughts of a child, a clinging, pleading hope, but the helplessness of the statement made pity wrench at my insides. "Reza..." I had never exactly had experience in explaining the cold truth of a merciless world to children!

"Please, Erik..." If Nadir thought that his son had lost interest in him, clearly he was greatly mistaken. "Please use your magic and make Father smile. I know you can do it."

I opened my mouth to tell him that I couldn't, that I was incapable, but I stopped myself. Defeat was not something I was accustomed to. I stood up.

"I will try my best, Reza." I was surprised with my own words, not quite understanding how I was going to do it. He gave me a trusting smile as I left, and I knew that I could not fail.

I found him in the courtyard, sitting at the fountain and staring into the water thoughtfully. If he saw me approaching, he made no sign of it. Sitting down silently beside him, I only watched him for a moment, studying his expression. He finally looked up, and our eyes met. We'd had several talks out here by this fountain, talks that represented our gradual bond. Talks that neither of us ever brought up again. Slowly I began to realize just how much he meant to me, something I should have realized long ago. My mind took me back to the many times Nadir had tolerated my unfair rage against his government and his customs directed at him. Numerous times I had tried to hate him, and each time I had failed.

Hesitantly he pulled a parcel out of his pocket and placed it before me. When I made no move to retrieve it, he spoke. "I bought it for you." Again, hesitance, as if he almost feared my reaction, my rejection. Reaching out a hand, I picked it up, the air thick around us. Time rolled by slowly like gel oozing out of a container. Unwrapping the parcel, I discovered some fine chocolates, a delicacy I was quite fond of. Why he had done this for me, I could not imagine. I rarely received gifts in my life...suddenly I felt like a small child who'd misbehaved and was too ashamed to accept praise.

"Thank you..." the words stumbled off of my lips, sounding almost foreign to me. Something as simple as a gift had caused me to lose the composure I clung to so desperately. I noticed something of a smile playing on his features, and for once I couldn't guess what he was thinking. The silence between us was deafening, both of us thinking but neither voicing what we wanted to say.

Finally, I had somehow composed myself. "I'm surprised at your actions today, Daroga." It was a simple, professional statement, with no hidden meaning. He smiled again, looking away and shrugging, dismissing it. But I persisted. "I wouldn't have expected that of you at all six months ago." He turned and looked me in the eye.

"I suppose a great deal of things have changed between us, Erik." We both knew it; it was the act of putting it into words that made it clear. I wanted to say something about Reza. I knew that Nadir was displeased with the child's affections towards me, but that seemed to have changed recently as well. He did not seem quite so resentful towards me, and it made me question what had changed in his mind.

And I realized that Reza was not the reason I had visited the marketplace at all.

For the first time since we had encountered each other, I felt like the man could see directly through me. I felt vulnerable to those dark eyes, a position that made me extremely uncomfortable. The lump gathered in my throat, my own heart beat pulsing in my ears as he simply watched me. Usually when his gaze made me nervous, he'd give me the courtesy of looking away, but not now. It was almost like a direct challenge, a test to see if I would stand and run.

I did not run. Despite my nerves, I returned his gaze, refusing to either back down or make the next step forward.

"Erik...I would like it if you would come to my chambers with me." There was something in his voice that I could not comprehend, which only proceeded to unnerve me. Silently I stood, as if under a spell, a strange twist of irony. Something told me to flee, but my feet wouldn't carry me anywhere except behind Nadir. When we reached his room, he closed the door and turned to face me, the same intent look in his eye.

"Daroga, I should like to know the meaning of this --" Hard as I might try, my voice still quivered slightly. As subtle as it was, he still caught it, and it could tell by the look on his face that his confidence was growing. He reached for me, and I took a step back.

"Erik..." I barely heard my name from his lips as his fingers came to my mask, my hand whipping up to catch his wrist with a frown. Surprisingly, he did not flinch or turn away, only gave me a reprimanding look.

"Trust me, Erik." He had seen my face several times before now, but never made a move as bold as this. Slowly I released my grip, glaring at him as he removed the mask and put it aside. Memories flooded in of others who had made the same request, none of which had meant well.

He only looked at me for a moment, studying even inch of me, making it harder and harder for me to return his gaze. I felt weak and exposed, but he did not so much as flinch at my maskless face. Gently he reached out, watching me wince but not pull away, and ran his hand along my hair, not breaking the eye contact, as if looking away would break the spell. Involuntarily I made a small whimpering noise, only a further shot at my pride, not understanding why he was showing me this mixture of kindness and torture.

"Daroga.." the word was helpless now, almost pleading, despite my pride's losing battle. He took a brave step closer to me, letting his warm hand stroke my face, possibly exploring as much as I would let him. I was almost sure he could see the internal battle I was suffering, but he pressed on, finally leaning in and brushing his lips softly against my own. He pulled away with a look of surprise that mirrored my own, as if he had just challenged death itself. My eyes brimmed with unexpected tears of joy, of sorrow, of disbelief...many emotions contradicting each other and making me defenseless before him. He was smiling...

Frantically I struggled to pull some words together, something in my defense, but his lips were on mine again, firmer this time, more confident. I was still caught quite off-guard, gasping as he did so, as his hand cupped on to the back of my neck. My eyes closed and I felt myself submitting to the gentle kiss, a tear sliding down each cheek.

After an eternity he tore away from me. I stared at him breathlessly, at a loss for words, and discovered that my hands were shaking. He took them in his own, looking into my eyes, refusing to let me look away.

"Let me give this to you, Erik. Let me love you." He was putting himself at my mercy, making himself vulnerable in turn. Letting me make the choice. Nadir was just as proud as me, and here he was, giving _me_ the choice.

I reached out towards him then, my still-shaking hand on his arm, pulling him near me, feeling his warmth. His face nestled into the crook between my neck and shoulder sent a chill along my skin, a chill he greeted with gentle lips, his actions still sweet and persuading. Finally I felt that I could again somewhat decipher what he must have been thinking. His actions showed that he was being careful with me, not pushing me too far, awaiting any sudden refusal. For the first time in many years I felt like a vulnerable toy, something fragile that must be handled carefully. It was not my body that was fragile.

Both of my hands gripped his arms now as he kissed along my collarbone. Lifting my head to give him more of an advantage, I found that the firmer my hands became, the less of a restraint he had over himself. Slowly his hands worked up my chest and to my robes, slipping them off of my shoulders and revealing the pale skin beneath. He continued his trail of kisses down my chest and it created such a pleasurable sensation that I could not contain my gasps and moans.

This apparently only succeeded to further excite him, another of a series of shocks for me. He continued downward, the gentle man quickly morphing into a lustful creature, his hands going to my lower garments in his hurry. But I was not ready to submit so quickly. Gripping him firmly and pulling him up, I could tell that he almost doubted himself by the look on his face, as if he thought I meant to stop. Now the reassuring one, I leaned in, gently pressing my lips on his cheek, then along his jaw to his ear.

Oh, to kiss someone! It was a simple sensation I never expected to feel, much less to be given. Part of me wanted to relish in it forever, but that part of me was being quickly subdued by another side that was surfacing. I slipped my hands under his robes, peeling them off with ease and letting them fall to the floor, my fingers touching lightly on the olive flesh. He was already quite warm, and I was afraid my cold skin would sicken him, but it seemed to have quite the opposite effect. He whispered my name like a prayer that threatened to bring tears to my eyes, but the emotional man had retreated within me and left only the beast.

My hands were quicker than his, and in an instant I had disrobed him completely, leaving him naked and vulnerable to my gaze and the warm wind that drifted through the window. I let my hands trace down his arms, his chest, his thighs, taking in his thin form with my fingers and feeling him shudder. This time my mouth found his, completely engulfing his lips, our tongues entwining in some sort of passionate battle. He moaned against my mouth, and I felt him harden against my thigh.

I pulled away from him suddenly, panting for air, a warmth spreading over me like fire. "On the bed. Now." Something about the slight huskiness in my voice seemed to make him comply, turning towards the bed as I came after him, seeing nothing, knowing nothing else but the desperate lust that I had stifled for so long. I had thought that if it remained caged, it would be beaten into submission. Now I realized that the spirit was not broken; it had only crouched and waited to be set free, more aggressive than ever.

When I climbed onto the bed after him, he seemed to have regained some sense of thought, and was determined to have me completely revealed as well. His hands went to my lower garments again, and this time I let him pull them down. We were vulnerable together, and somehow it made me feel more equal to him than I ever had.

"Erik..." he groaned out my name as I gripped his hips with my hands, my lips kissing up his chest to his collarbone, each movement becoming rougher and less harnessed. Kissing along his neck with a surge of lust, I could have quite possibly left bruises, but he made no protest. I had always pictured lovemaking to be a sweet, gentle thing...but I could see that between us that would be quite impossible tonight. Both of us were too eager; normally I would not have assumed such a thing, but his sweat-soaked skin and obvious erection made any other conclusion unimaginable.

At length I raised my body, hovering over his and simply looking down at his thin frame against the sheets. His ear-length bangs clung to his forehead, outlined eyes large and dark. It was a warm night; his warm body felt good against my own, and I could see that my cool touch relieved him, rather than filled him with the dread that I was so accustomed to. I watched him in that moment, but did not give either of us time to hit realization just yet. With force I pulled him up and flipped him on his stomach, a shocked gasp escaping him in his surprise.

I was fully aware of the effect my voice had on people. Sometimes I used it to my advantage, to obtain things I needed, to enlist some sort of control and power over those around me. It had crossed my mind exactly what could be accomplished with that kind of skill...but that was not what I wanted. I could easily have put Nadir in that trance and taken him, but I did not want a lifeless doll. Never would I stoop to the level of a beast.

Slowly I inserted two fingers into him, watching him wince as I scissored around as carefully as possible, trying to find a spot that would cause him minimal pain. He adjusted quickly, letting me work deeper inside of him until I found a spot that pushed a low, beautiful moan from his throat. Continuing the process, I gradually increased my pace as he grew used to the sensation, the gasps he gave enough to make me sufficiently light-headed.

It wasn't enough. Running one hand along his thigh, I slowly removed my fingers, feeling the shudder run through him. Easing my erection into him gradually, I again allowed him to adjust, fearing hurting him, despite how hard my instincts drove me. The thrusting was slow at first, but he eventually began to urge me deeper, sweat glistening along his back as his hands clung to the sheets. I looked up to see the candles that someone had lit earlier flickering softly, creating a warm glow that illuminated the beauty beneath me.

The most unbelievable feeling! Both of us gasping each other's names, our passion became more intense with each thrust. I felt blinded, clinging to his hip and I pressed further and further, almost unable to control myself as our bodies clashed together in a fantastic unison, like two vocalists struggling to out sing each other and only succeeding in bringing together a perfect harmony. I could feel myself nearing release, which urged me to reach my hand around and grip between his legs to bring him to the rhythmic climax with me.

Like a long, drawn-out note, a crescendo until the very end, I peaked within him, releasing an animalistic noise, as if the caged creature had finally been set free. He followed after me with a shudder and a groan, his body now slick with sweat. As I slowly pulled out of him and came to rest at his side, I noticed that he was panting much harder than I was. A numbing sensation came over me as I pulled the sheets over us both, watching his body slowly regain its normal breathing habits. My name was whispered again, and this time the tears came willingly, flowing with the remnants of my pride and the wall I had built up against him.

I was not the only one who needed saving. I had searched for some sort of gift to give him, but I now knew that this was greater than anything else I could have offered. Something that we both needed more than we could have possibly known.p Even when I had been forced to plunge in the deepest crevices of the darkness in my mind, somehow Nadir had found light.

He fell asleep quickly, the warmth of the room and our exhaustion creating a foggy haze.

"You cast one of your spells, didn't you, Erik?" Nadir had long since left the child's room and was now seated outside in the courtyard alone. I had appeared at Reza's bedside only at his request. The child's eyes were eager and bright, searching me for the answer, as if he were certain he had assumed correctly. Children are much more intuitive than we give them credit for. At times I often wondered if he could read me as well as he read his father. Looking into his expectant eyes as he awaited an answer, I stood. A small smile dancing on my lips beneath the mask, I tried to keep a firm tone as I told him to take his medicine, turning to exit, leaving him alone with one of the women of the household to care for him.


End file.
